BSJ Game Report: Celtics 132, Knicks 109 - Celtics flex championship muscle on ring night blowout of New York

Everything you need to know about the Celtics opening night win over the Knicks, with BSJ insight and analysis

IN A NUTSHELL

The Celtics came out strong, led by Jayson Tatum, and never looked back. Tatum scored 15 in the first on 5-7 shooting (4-6 from 3) to lead a 3-point barrage. The teams played even in the second but an early run kicked off a dominant third quarter that pushed the lead to 30. It was a wrap from there, with the only intrigue being whether the Celtic would break the NBA record for made 3-pointers in a game. But they missed 13 in a row after tying the record to settle at 29. 

Box Score

HEADLINES

- Scorching shooting: I highlighted Tatum’s jumper in the preview, saying I’d like that storyline to subside quickly. He obliged with an 8-11 night from 3 to lead a Boston barrage. The team was 26-45 heading into the fourth, a cool 57.8%. They outscored the Knicks by 87-33 from 3, tying the NBA record in the process.

- Dominating the margins: They had more rebounds, more offensive rebounds, fewer turnovers, more shots, and obviously more 3-pointers than the Knicks. The Knicks shot well, so they made the shots they got, but they were mostly 2-pointers to Boston’s 3s. The Knicks finished with 42 points in the paint but got blown out. 

- The Knicks are a mess right now: We will not be overreacting to one game, but the Knicks are not exactly close to their expectations at the moment. It shouldn’t be a surprise considering how late in the season the trade was. They are going to need time to figure themselves out, but they had nothing for Boston defensively and they played nothing like last year’s Knicks. They only had five offensive rebounds after dominating that category last season. They finished with four fast break points, partly because they only forced four Boston turnovers for two points. The trade for Karl-Anthony Towns and the Mitchell Robinson injury have changed how New York plays and Mikal Bridges turned his jump shot into a janky-looking mess. And did OG Anunoby even play?

Who knows what the Knicks will become by March, but this version of New York is nowhere near the Celtics challenger we were promised. It's too early for them to be concerned, but it's also not too early to make some notes about future things to be concerned about.

TURNING POINT

It was 13-12 early in the first quarter and Boston outscored the Knicks 30-12 the rest of the way to hold a 19 point lead after the first. The Knicks never really threatened after that. 

THINGS I LIKED

- The focus: The ring ceremony and banner raising didn’t throw Boston off at all. This team looked focused all preseason and they lived up to that in this game. Yes, they were hot from 3, but they generated a lot of good looks. Most of the 3-pointers they took were good, in rhythm, and open off passes. The Knicks shot well but holding them to 78 shots to Boston’s 95 is the kind of winning math Joe Mazzulla wants. 

- Jayson Tatum: He dominated this game, scoring 37 points in 30 minutes and on 18 shots. More impressively, he managed 10 assists on a night he was blazing hot, meaning he wasn’t just looking for his own offense. Obviously, it’s easy to pile up assists when your teammates are making shots too, but the ball movement made it happen. Tack on a steal, a block, and only one turnover and this ended up being a damn near perfect Tatum performance. 

- Jaylen Brown: He missed a couple of shots at the end when it didn’t matter to knock his percentages down, but Brown was almost as hot as Tatum was. He had a nice 23-point night but added seven rebounds, tying him with Xavier Tillman for the team's best. He also played some terrific defense, highlighted by hounding Jalen Brunson into an 8-second violation.

- Derrick White: 24 points on 8-13 shooting (6-10 3pt). Everyone was hot from 3 tonight … mostly. 

- Jrue Holiday: 18 points on 7-9 fg (4-6 3pt). But despite the Knicks shooting 55%, I thought Holiday and White both had pretty good defensive games. I think the Celtics defense was pretty good in general, mostly by preventing the Knicks from getting second chances whenever they missed. 

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE

- The rough shooting finish: I don’t really care much about it, but missing 13 3-pointers in a row when they only needed one to break the record was funny. It also served as a lesson. 

“It was like when we were just playing, having fun, playing our style of basketball, everything was going in,” Brown said. “And then once the crowd got into it and we started hunting them, we couldn’t even hit the broad side of the barn. Everything was off. We got a bunch of great looks and it was like a lid on the basket. So that just shows, like, we’re not a team that’s hunting 3s. We play the game and we do what we’re supposed to do, but I think towards the end it was tough because we wasn’t playing the way we had normally played.”

- Xavier Tillman’s shooting: He was 0-3 from 3. Not only didn’t he make a 3, but he robbed me of a great story by missing chances to be the guy who broke the record. I’ll never forgive him for that and now I’m going to look for all the ways he can be traded.

… okay maybe not but it would have been fun. 

- They couldn't iron the banner before it went up? 

Look, I don’t want to be nitpicky … but … umm … they couldn't steam that thing or something ahead of time? 

HIGHLIGHTS

TAKES KARALIS WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER

- I’m impressed by this kind of win: I’m really not trying to overreact to a single game, but if the emotions of ring night can’t derail the Celtics even for a few minutes, then maybe we all should be paying a little closer attention to this season. 

And by that I mean take special care to remember things. Don’t let these moments pass you by. Really digest what this team is doing, because this level of focus and execution right away is incredible. 

“It's a credit to them, the character and the mindset that those guys have,” Mazzulla said after the game. “I thought the guys did a great job, but it's who they are, and that's why I have innate trust and confidence in who these guys are. But it was impressive to go from (the ceremony) to (the game performance). But if you look at it the way we want to, they're the same thing. The ring ceremony and the game are the same thing because the intangibles there are the details, the execution, the effort, the togetherness and the toughness, and so we were able to carry on those intangibles from there to there, and that's kind of the goal.”

I don’t want to go on and on about it. They looked great and they got an already important win over a division rival trying to knock them off their pedestal. This win will matter if a tiebreaker becomes necessary.

- I'm also impressed with the crowd: Call me crazy but the “one more three” chant was not only hilarious, but it shows how knowledgeable this fan base is. They all knew Boston was approaching the record and when they got within one, it was clear the crowd was fully aware. 

- We need to make more of this completely disrespectful 3-pointer: Tatum’s final 3-pointer could have been a wide-open catch-and-shoot. Instead, this happened: 

Sure, he could have taken the super-clean shot, but what fun would that have been? Why not wait for Sims to think he had a chance before breaking his heart? 

Seriously, look at Sims’ reaction. He can’t believe it either. 

This is absolutely, without a doubt, 100% a thing because Tatum made the shot. If he missed, it would have been a case of him feeling himself too much and not playing the right way at the end.

… winners writing history and so forth.

Next up: The Celtics travel to Washington to take on the Wizards Thursday night.